Roanoke: The Lost Colony: An Unsolved Mystery from History

Written by Jane Yolen and Heidi E. Y. Stemple

Narrated by Jessica Almasy

Spurred on by Sir Walter Raleigh, John White leads 120 men, women, and children across the treacherous Atlantic to colonize the wilds of Virginia. Landing at Roanoke Island in July of 1587-with hostile Indians afoot and little food for winter-the colonists persuade White to return to England for the supplies and help they need. After a terrifying ocean crossing, White finds every available British ship pressed into service against the looming threat of the Spanish Armada. When White finally returns to Virginia after three years, the colonists are nowhere to be found. Their fate still remains one of history's most puzzling mysteries. An award-winning author of more than 200 books-including Briar Rose and The Devil's Arithmetic-Jane Yolen teams up with her private detective daughter Heidi Elisabet Yolen Stemple to explore a story that has baffled generations. Jessica Almasy's pitch-perfect narration makes this a truly memorable listening experience for children and their parents. "An attractive, intriguing introduction to the lost colony."-Booklist "This intriguing entry . invites readers to use their detective skills to solve a puzzle from the past."-Publishers Weekly ". a fine contribution to middle elementary history studies ."-Children's Literature

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781470357603

Jane Yolen

<p><strong>Jane Yolen</strong> is a highly acclaimed author who has written hundreds of books for children and adults and has won numerous awards. She and her husband divide their time between Massachussetts and Scotland.</p>

Reviews for Roanoke

[Dan Tailleur · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

So lame. Starts off right away preaching “woke” BS about “without regard to the rights blah blah blah.” As if any humans during that period, including the Indigenous peoples or Africans who sold other Africans into slavery, were concerned about “the rights” of others. I feel sorry for kids who are getting brainwashed by this drivel.

This is not to say that issues of injustice or exploitation shouldn’t be mentioned, but competition for land and resources took place everywhere in the world, by all cultures.
The Roanoke story was more about survival, and those English colonists were in no position to compete with the indigenous population, much less impose their will upon them. Look elsewhere for more realistic and less indoctrinated telling of this story for children.

[nijania · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A little girl tells the story of Roanoke, the colonists, Native Americans, and Englishmen. She wants to be a detective like her father, so after reading an actual passage in the story, she explains vocabulary and provides clues she has written in her notebook. At the end of the story she lists all her clues and a timeline for the reader to create their own idea of what happened. Students will learn about Roanoke and even form theories of their own. This book would be interesting for students because it is told from the point of view of a young girl and kids learn from their peers.

[supendleton · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The book is a quick read aloud for elementary students and can also be read independently by grades 3 and up. The authors begin the book with a first person narrative of a young girl who is trying to solve a mystery- the mysterious disappearance of the Roanoke colony in Virginia. The book is organized in a chronological fashion beginning in 1587 before the arrival of the "new colonists" to Roanoke. I found the book very interesting; I did not know that there was a failed attempt to begin a colony BEFORE John White arrived with more than 90 colonists. I also was unaware that two Native Americans were traveling with the group of colonists. It is easy to tell that the authors conducted a great amount of research on the subject of Roanoke. There are many details that students would find interesting such as the colonists eating tortoises and drinking "evil" water that caused them to become ill. The authors also use colored boxes to define terms students may not understand. The end of the book gives possible theories as to why the colonists disappeared and also includes a time line. The illustrations are large and colorful- students would be attracted to the pages. The story information is actually inserted like note cards on the illustrated pages. Jane Yolen, a well known children's author, co-authors this text with a former private investigator. There is a bibliography listed at the beginning of the book as well as websites to visit. I have read another "Unsolved Mystery from History" book before and really enjoyed it- "The Mary Celeste." I would definitely recommend this book for those teaching social studies in the elementary grades.

[lauramcqueen · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this story. I really liked how it was told from the view of a young girl, I think that would help students relate to it. I also liked that it could easily be put into a social studies lesson to help explain things about the colonists. I also liked that there were a lot of vocabulary words and there were also definitions for those words. I think that students would really enjoy this story too because it is such a mystery and no one knows for sure what happened to the colonists at Roanoke.

[lekenned · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A non- fiction book about the early American settlement, this would be a good book to read to students when teaching early American history.

[momma2_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This clearly gave us all the facts known about the lost colony, including some archeological facts. It then presented the top 5 most popular theories on Roanoke. The children enjoyed discussing the theories and deciding for themselves based on the facts presented.

[angmarwilson · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book was told in a version by a young girl. The book uses pictures, stories, and documents from history to re-create the events surrounding the Roanoke colonists disappearances. The young girl concludes by sharing possible theories and explaining the mystery behind the STILL missing Roanoke colonists.

I enjoy reading books about history and its mysteries. This book piqued my interest. The book had great illustrations and its layout was very informative and easy to follow along with.

I would use this book during my history lesson. Another way I would use this book is to create a discussion with my students and listen to their theories of what might had happened to the missing colonists.